Post by Richard Kimble on Dec 13, 2017 11:32:24 GMT
Variety.com
Pat DiNizio, vocalist-guitarist-songwriter for the tough yet tuneful New Jersey rock band the Smithereens, died Tuesday. He was 62.
The group announced his passing on their web site. No cause of death was given, but the musician had been beset by health problems in recent years; in 2015 he was sidelined after losing the use of his right hand and arm following a pair of falls that incurred serious nerve damage.
Founded in Carteret, NJ, the Smithereens were among the most widely admired power-pop units of their era. DiNizio was the group’s principal songwriter; he specialized in melodic yet tough tunes that won the band comparisons to precursors like the Who and contemporaries like England’s Rockpile.
The group announced his passing on their web site. No cause of death was given, but the musician had been beset by health problems in recent years; in 2015 he was sidelined after losing the use of his right hand and arm following a pair of falls that incurred serious nerve damage.
Founded in Carteret, NJ, the Smithereens were among the most widely admired power-pop units of their era. DiNizio was the group’s principal songwriter; he specialized in melodic yet tough tunes that won the band comparisons to precursors like the Who and contemporaries like England’s Rockpile.
Though never a major success, the quartet acquired a loyal following with their early albums for Enigma Records. Their brand of rock classicism could be heard in such fan favorites as “Blood and Roses,” “Strangers When We Meet,” “Behind the Wall of Sleep,” “In a Lonely Place,” “Only a Memory,” and “A Girl Like You.”
